I have been having a temperature problem on my ford escort 1.6 16v zetec engine. Yesterday i hit a speedbump with usual speed and a hose that goes from the water pump to the radiator got torn near the radiator. As soon as this happened i saw the steam comming from under the hood (but the temp gauge was still in the middle as normal)and stopped the car. After shutting off the engine the car started leaking cooling fluid from where the hose broke, but not before i turned off the engine. Well, the next day i went to a mecanic where he replaced the part and said i was good to go. Well i came home with it but i satrted having problems with the temp gauge. The needle goes from the R to the L and back. And the odd thing is that the temperature only rises to L when i'm not moving with the car(engine still running). Mecanic said it was ok but i'd really like a second opinion. Can someone please give me an ideea as to what could be the problem.

I've had the same or similar temp gauge issues on both a 1998 and a 2000 escort and renenwing the temp sensor and thermostat solved the problem on both cars, it's quite a well-known issue

Whether or not this would solve it on yours or not I couldn't say, but they're cheap parts and easy to replace so I'd start there

You didn't mention whether the mechanic replaced the coolant or even just topped it back up as you lost some, we can only assume he did, but personally I would've drained the coolant and replaced it with new

Thank you for your advice. About the coolant, the mechanic said he changed it. Well the symptoms changed, now the temp gauge stays in the middle at the R but from time to time it drops to under the white patch and goes back up to the middle. This whole thing takes about 30~60 seconds or so. PS: Thankfully it doesn't go any hotter than M.

Another issue known to cause erratic behaviour of the temp gauge is a bad earth to the gauge/clock

Worth checking